Florida Senate - 2012                              CS for SB 208
       
       
       
       By the Committee on Health Regulation; and Senator Joyner
       
       
       
       
       588-00842A-12                                          2012208c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to health care fraud; amending s.
    3         456.0635, F.S.; revising the grounds under which the
    4         Department of Health or corresponding board is
    5         required to refuse to admit a candidate to an
    6         examination and refuse to issue or renew a license,
    7         certificate, or registration of a health care
    8         practitioner; providing an exception; amending s.
    9         456.036, F.S.; providing that all persons who were
   10         denied renewal of licensure, certification, or
   11         registration under s. 456.0635(3), F.S., may regain
   12         licensure, certification, or registration only by
   13         completing the application process for initial
   14         licensure; providing an exception; providing an
   15         effective date.
   16  
   17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   18  
   19         Section 1. Section 456.0635, Florida Statutes, is amended
   20  to read:
   21         456.0635 Health care Medicaid fraud; disqualification for
   22  license, certificate, or registration.—
   23         (1) Health care Medicaid fraud in the practice of a health
   24  care profession is prohibited.
   25         (2) Each board within the jurisdiction of the department,
   26  or the department if there is no board, shall refuse to admit a
   27  candidate to any examination and refuse to issue or renew a
   28  license, certificate, or registration to any applicant if the
   29  candidate or applicant or any principal, officer, agent,
   30  managing employee, or affiliated person of the applicant, has
   31  been:
   32         (a) Has been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or
   33  nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a felony under
   34  chapter 409, chapter 817, or chapter 893, or a similar felony
   35  offense committed in another state or jurisdiction, unless the
   36  candidate or applicant has successfully completed a pretrial
   37  intervention or drug diversion program for that felony. Any such
   38  conviction or plea shall exclude the applicant or candidate from
   39  licensure, examination, certification, or registration 21 U.S.C.
   40  ss. 801-970, or 42 U.S.C. ss. 1395-1396, unless the sentence and
   41  any subsequent period of probation for such conviction or plea
   42  pleas ended: more than 15 years prior to the date of the
   43  application;
   44         1. For felonies of the first or second degree, more than 15
   45  years before the date of application.
   46         2. For felonies of the third degree, more than 10 years
   47  before the date of application, except for felonies of the third
   48  degree under s. 893.13(6)(a).
   49         3. For felonies of the third degree under s. 893.13(6)(a),
   50  more than 5 years before the date of application;
   51         (b) Has been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or
   52  nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a felony under
   53  21 U.S.C. ss. 801-970, or 42 U.S.C. ss. 1395-1396, unless the
   54  sentence and any subsequent period of probation for such
   55  conviction or plea ended more than 15 years before the date of
   56  the application;
   57         (c)(b)Has been terminated for cause from the Florida
   58  Medicaid program pursuant to s. 409.913, unless the candidate or
   59  applicant has been in good standing with the Florida Medicaid
   60  program for the most recent 5 years;
   61         (d)(c)Has been terminated for cause, pursuant to the
   62  appeals procedures established by the state or Federal
   63  Government, from any other state Medicaid program or the federal
   64  Medicare program, unless the candidate or applicant has been in
   65  good standing with a state Medicaid program or the federal
   66  Medicare program for the most recent 5 years and the termination
   67  occurred at least 20 years before prior to the date of the
   68  application; or.
   69         (e) Is currently listed on the United States Department of
   70  Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s List of
   71  Excluded Individuals and Entities.
   72  
   73  This subsection does not apply to candidates or applicants for
   74  initial licensure or certification who were enrolled in an
   75  educational or training program on or before July 1, 2009, which
   76  was recognized by a board or, if there is no board, recognized
   77  by the department, and who applied for licensure after July 1,
   78  2012.
   79         (3) The department shall refuse to renew a license,
   80  certificate, or registration of any applicant if the applicant
   81  or any principal, officer, agent, managing employee, or
   82  affiliated person of the applicant:
   83         (a) Has been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or
   84  nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a felony under
   85  chapter 409, chapter 817, or chapter 893, or a similar felony
   86  offense committed in another state or jurisdiction since July 1,
   87  2009, unless the applicant is currently enrolled in or has
   88  successfully completed a pretrial intervention or drug diversion
   89  program for that felony. Any such conviction or plea shall
   90  exclude the applicant from renewal of licensure, certification,
   91  or registration unless the sentence and any subsequent period of
   92  probation for such conviction or plea ended:
   93         1. For felonies of the first or second degree, more than 15
   94  years before the date of application.
   95         2. For felonies of the third degree, more than 10 years
   96  before the date of application, except for felonies of the third
   97  degree under s. 893.13(6)(a).
   98         3. For felonies of the third degree under s. 893.13(6)(a),
   99  more than 5 years before the date of application.
  100         (b) Has been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or
  101  nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a felony under
  102  21 U.S.C. ss. 801-970, or 42 U.S.C. ss. 1395-1396 since July 1,
  103  2009, unless the sentence and any subsequent period of probation
  104  for such conviction or plea ended more than 15 years before the
  105  date of the application.
  106         (c) Has been terminated for cause from the Florida Medicaid
  107  program pursuant to s. 409.913, unless the applicant has been in
  108  good standing with the Florida Medicaid program for the most
  109  recent 5 years.
  110         (d) Has been terminated for cause, pursuant to the appeals
  111  procedures established by the state, from any other state
  112  Medicaid program, unless the applicant has been in good standing
  113  with a state Medicaid program for the most recent 5 years and
  114  the termination occurred at least 20 years before the date of
  115  the application.
  116         (e) Is currently listed on the United States Department of
  117  Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s List of
  118  Excluded Individuals and Entities.
  119         (4)(3) Licensed health care practitioners shall report
  120  allegations of health care Medicaid fraud to the department,
  121  regardless of the practice setting in which the alleged health
  122  care Medicaid fraud occurred.
  123         (5)(4) The acceptance by a licensing authority of a
  124  licensee’s candidate’s relinquishment of a license which is
  125  offered in response to or anticipation of the filing of
  126  administrative charges alleging health care Medicaid fraud or
  127  similar charges constitutes the permanent revocation of the
  128  license.
  129         Section 2. Present subsections (14) and (15) of section
  130  456.036, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (15)
  131  and (16), respectively, and a new subsection (14) is added to
  132  that section, to read:
  133         456.036 Licenses; active and inactive status; delinquency.—
  134         (14) A person who has been denied renewal of licensure,
  135  certification, or registration under s. 456.0635(3) may regain
  136  licensure, certification, or registration only by meeting the
  137  qualifications and completing the application process for
  138  initial licensure as defined by the board, or the department if
  139  there is no board. However, a person who was denied renewal of
  140  licensure, certification, or registration under s. 24 of chapter
  141  2009-223, Laws of Florida, between July 1, 2009, and June 30,
  142  2012, is not required to retake and pass examinations applicable
  143  for initial licensure, certification, or registration.
  144         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.